Category: Market News

Early investments in metals mining have a history of delivering strong yields, and one emerging mining company is maximizing the vast potential of Bolivia to bring a jolt of supply to a world hungry for silver.

Global demand for silver is surging and shows no sign of easing. However, as the silver market is in its sixth year of a structural deficit between supply and demand. The perfect storm of high demand, scarce supply, and underdeveloped fields is driving silver to record-high price ranges, reaching $81 by mid-March 2026.

Silver is indispensable to the global electronics, transportation, and sustainability sectors, according to the Silver Institute. Silver powers up cellphones and tablets, converts sunlight to energy in solar panels, helps keep data centers cool, and puts electronic vehicles on the road.

“Silver does everything from the greenification of the globe to artificial intelligence and data centers,” Silver Institute President and CEO Michael DiRenzo said in the podcast. “There’s just not enough silver to meet demand right now.”

The podcast took a deep dive into mining development, the dwindling life of heritage silver mines, and the new players ripe for investment as they prepare for production that helps meet demand.

Ground-floor opportunities

As historical data and the respected Lassonde Value Curve show, early shareholders in “junior” mining companies – those pursuing early-stage due diligence – get to buy low before watching values rise steeply when the initial exploration, development, and feasibility phases transform into construction and production.

New Pacific Metals (AMEX:NEWP), Canadian owner of two of the world’s largest undeveloped open pitable silver projects, is among those stepping into the breach as a major future supplier.

Currently, New Pacific Metals’ two major precious metal assets in Bolivia are in the technical work, development, and permitting phase, creating opportunities for strong value creation when production drives share prices higher.

In this atmosphere, Bolivia is bullish on silver. The nation of 12.6 million people in west-central South America has been a bulwark of silver development since the 16^th century. Today, with three large-scale silver mines in operation, Bolivia is the world’s fourth-largest silver producing country, outputting 42 million ounces in 2023 and 2024.

Recognizing the job creation and economic benefits of mining, Bolivia’s newly elected government encourages foreign investment and is smoothing the way for responsible permitting and contracting. Low-cost power is available through stable connections to the electrical grid, and roads are getting upgrades for all-season access and efficient logistics.

New Pacific Metals is capitalizing on the rich deposits of its Silver Sand and Carangas projects. Silver Sand, in Bolivia’s growing Potosi region, has the potential to become one of the world’s largest silver mines, yielding around 12 million ounces of silver a year.

The Carangas silver-gold project in Oruro strengthens New Pacific’s portfolio through scale, robust economics, and regional exploration potential. Carangas offers output potential of about 6.5 million ounces annually, plus significant possibilities for growth amid a large ore body.

Combined, the potential annual silver output from Silver Sand and Carangas could equal, or exceed, that of many established global producers.

“Nineteen million ounces of silver coming to the market would be great, with respect to meeting this burgeoning demand,” said DiRenzo.

In 2026, New Pacific Metals is aligned to meet major objectives toward the goals of full permitting by early 2028. Both projects combine government engagement with strong local community partnerships to advance the environmental license.

“One of the most important things that mining companies take really seriously is sustainability in the development and maintenance of that community,” DiRenzo noted.

New Pacific’s major shareholders include two major players in global metals – Silvercorp, a 28 percent owner with additional assets in China, Ecuador, and Kyrgyzstan, and Pan American Silver, a longtime Bolivian producer with 12 percent ownership. Their skin in the game demonstrates confidence and reinforces the projects with additional strategic and technical backing.

Once New Pacific achieves permitting, an array of financing options are expected to deliver strong value to shareholders. As DiRenzo noted, many mining companies have joined the Silver Institute as juniors, “and they’re thriving now.”

“I anticipate the same case will be with New Pacific,” he said.

New Pacific Metals is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Its shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “NUAG” and on the NYSE American under “NEWP”.

For more on the demand driving up the value of silver-mining investments, listen to the Silver Institute “Talking Silver” podcast episode, “Meeting Silver’s Demand.”

Gold prices continued their downward trend in Asian trading on Tuesday, marking a tenth consecutive session of declines after Iran rejected claims that it had engaged in discussions with the United States following President Donald Trump’s decision to delay further strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure.

Spot gold was down 0.7% at $4,376.04 an ounce by 02:46 ET (06:46 GMT), while U.S. gold futures fell 0.6% to $4,413.59.

In the previous session, the precious metal had dropped to a four-month low before recovering slightly, though it still finished the day around 2% lower.

Middle East attacks continue despite Trump’s negotiation claims

On Monday, President Trump postponed a planned strike on Iran’s electricity grid, saying the move followed “very good and productive” discussions with unnamed Iranian officials.

The decision to delay further military action helped ease tensions across financial markets and triggered a sharp decline in oil prices, which allowed gold to recoup part of its earlier losses during the previous session.

However, Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, later stated on social media that no such talks had taken place, adding to the uncertainty surrounding the situation.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military reported Tuesday that Iran had launched several waves of missiles toward Israel, underscoring that the conflict shows no clear signs of easing.

Gold remained under pressure as investors also kept their attention on the broader economic outlook, particularly expectations surrounding future interest rate policy.

Despite its traditional reputation as a safe-haven asset during geopolitical turmoil, the metal has struggled to attract sustained demand.

Precious metals pressured by strong dollar and Fed outlook

Gold has faced persistent selling pressure in recent sessions as rising energy prices have intensified fears that inflation could remain elevated.

This has prompted markets to dial back expectations of monetary easing, with investors increasingly anticipating that central banks — including the Federal Reserve — will keep interest rates higher for longer.

Higher interest rates generally weigh on gold because the metal does not provide yield, making income-generating assets such as government bonds more attractive by comparison.

The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.4% in early Tuesday trading.

Among other precious metals, silver declined 0.4% to $68.91 an ounce, while platinum slipped 0.3% to $1,883.05 an ounce.

Copper prices also moved lower. Benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange dropped 1.4% to $12,022.33 per ton, while U.S. copper futures fell 1.3% to $5.41 per pound.

Oil prices moved higher on Tuesday as investors reassessed supply risks following Iran’s denial that it had engaged in talks with the United States to end the Gulf conflict, contradicting statements by U.S. President Donald Trump that an agreement could be reached soon.

Crude futures had tumbled by more than 10% on Monday after Trump ordered a five-day pause in planned attacks on Iran’s power infrastructure, saying the United States had held discussions with unnamed Iranian officials that had produced “major points of agreement”.

By 08:58 GMT, Brent crude futures were up $1.25, or 1.3%, at $101.19 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose $2.15, or 2.4%, to $90.28.

The ongoing war has effectively halted shipments passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway south of Iran that carries roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows. The International Energy Agency has described the disruption as the largest oil supply shock ever recorded.

“Today’s moderate bounce is just the market finding its footing in the mud,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade. “Traders are aware that while the missiles are on hold, the Strait of Hormuz is still far from a clear waterway.”

On Tuesday, Iran launched multiple waves of missiles toward Israel. Officials in Tehran rejected Trump’s claims of negotiations, dismissing them as ’fake news.’

“The Iran conflict sees tentative de-escalation, but unresolved risks remain around Hormuz,” BCA Research said in a report. “Given continued attack risks and headline volatility, it remains too early to position aggressively for lower oil prices.”

Macquarie warned that if the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed through the end of April, Brent prices could climb to $150 per barrel — exceeding the previous record high of $147 reached in 2008.

Meanwhile, new attacks on regional energy infrastructure were reported. Iran’s Fars news agency said a gas company office and a pressure-reduction facility were struck in the city of Isfahan, while a projectile also hit a gas pipeline supplying a power station in Khorramshahr.

Economic growth across the eurozone slowed markedly in March as conflict in the Middle East pushed input costs to their highest levels in more than three years, according to preliminary figures released on Tuesday.

The S&P Global Flash Eurozone Composite PMI Output Index dropped to 50.5 in March from 51.9 in February, its lowest reading in ten months. Although the index remained above the 50 threshold that separates expansion from contraction—marking the fifteenth consecutive month of growth—the data indicated that overall economic activity expanded only marginally.

The slowdown was mainly driven by weaker performance in the services sector. The Services Business Activity Index fell to 50.1 from 51.9, also reaching a ten-month low. Manufacturing output eased slightly to 51.7 from 51.9, a two-month low, though the broader Manufacturing PMI rose to 51.4 from 50.8, its highest level in 45 months.

New orders fell for the first time in eight months, with the decline concentrated in services, while manufacturing orders continued to increase. New export orders also edged lower, extending a decline that has now lasted forty-nine consecutive months.

Cost pressures intensified across the economy. Input prices rose at the fastest rate since February 2023, with manufacturing experiencing a sharper increase than services. Companies passed some of these higher costs on to customers, raising selling prices at the quickest pace since February 2024, although the increase was less pronounced than the rise in input costs.

The conflict in the Middle East also disrupted supply chains. Manufacturers reported the most significant delays in supplier delivery times since August 2022. Purchasing activity in the manufacturing sector expanded for the first time in 44 months, but inventories of both raw materials and finished goods continued to decline.

Employment fell for the third straight month, driven mainly by job cuts in manufacturing. Workforce numbers in that sector have been shrinking every month since June 2023. In contrast, employment in services increased slightly, though the pace of hiring was the slowest since September.

Among the eurozone’s largest economies, Germany continued to record output growth, supported by the strongest expansion in manufacturing production in more than four years. France, however, saw output decline again, while the rest of the eurozone registered only modest growth—the weakest pace in 27 months.

Business confidence deteriorated sharply, falling to its lowest level in nearly a year. The decline in sentiment was the steepest since the early stages of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said the survey data are indicative of eurozone GDP growth slowing to a quarterly rate of just below 0.1% in March. The survey’s price gauge is indicative of consumer price inflation accelerating close to 3%.

The survey data were collected between March 12 and March 20.

Everplay Group (LSE:EVPL) published its full-year results on Tuesday, reporting an 11% increase in adjusted EBITDA as the interactive entertainment company reaffirmed its guidance for the current financial year.

The group generated revenue of £166m in FY25, unchanged year on year and consistent with the figures outlined in its previous trading update. Adjusted EBITDA rose 11% to £48.5m, broadly matching both the earlier update and market expectations of £48.7m. Profitability improved, with the EBITDA margin expanding by 3.1 percentage points to 29.2%.

Cash balances declined to £51.9m from £62.9m, reflecting dividend payments and merger and acquisition activity during the year. The board proposed a final dividend of 1.9p per share, taking the total dividend for the year to 2.9p.

Looking ahead to FY26, management said the company had made a good start to the year and confirmed expectations for performance to align with current market forecasts.

Consensus estimates suggest revenue and EBITDA will rise by around 5% and 4% respectively to £174m and £50.5m. The company’s 2026 release schedule includes at least 15 new games and applications, with a minimum of five expected to be first-party titles.

Revenue from first-party intellectual property declined 9% year on year and accounted for 34% of total revenue, reflecting softer performance at astragon, where first-party titles represent 83% of the portfolio. However, first-party IP revenue increased 11% during the second half of FY25. Third-party intellectual property revenue grew 4%, supported by major franchises from Team17 and StoryToys.

Back catalogue revenue declined 13% and represented 75% of overall sales, though it remained 10% higher than FY23 levels. In contrast, revenue from new releases jumped 80%, led by strong performance from Date Everything!.

By division, Team17 delivered record revenue of £106m, an 8% increase year on year. Astragon revenue fell 33%, or 18% excluding the exit from physical distribution, as both new releases and back catalogue sales underperformed expectations. StoryToys reported a 25% revenue increase, supported by strong demand for LEGO Bluey.

The company expects capitalised development spending and amortisation to rise in FY26, with development investment projected to peak during the year. This reflects a strategic shift toward expanding first-party intellectual property, with the resulting royalty savings expected to offset some of the margin pressure.